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joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam
The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.
Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.
Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!
Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.
Click here to report a problem with this page.
Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:
- This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "hundred thousand united states dollars" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Dr.Williams Nelson" <bahbahlincoln@gmail.com>
Reply-To: lincobah14@gmail.com
Date: Tue, 21 Sep 2021 16:08:21 -0700
Subject: WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?
Dear Friend,
I am communicating with you on behalf of Axiom Rock Bank International
London, United kingdom. Sir, after several attempts to reach you on
your telephone, we deemed it necessary and urgent to inform you of
this notice. We received two million five hundred thousand United
States dollars bank draft in your name from West African Economic and
monetary union recovery committee as a compensation for accrued
interest due to delayed payment on your unfinished transaction which
has been ordered for us to process and release to you immediately
through our bank. Confirm your whereabouts and readiness over this
development for more information on how you will recover this
compensation.
Thanks
Mr. Williams Nelson
Consultant
Axiom Rock Bank
International London, United kingdom
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Anti-fraud resources:
